Cambodia’s economy to expand 5.1% in 2022, 6.2% in 2023

The growth projection for 2023 is expected to surpass 6.2 percent due to the tourism sector

Cambodia’s Ministry of Economy and Finance expects that economy this year will experience a 5.1 percent growth and will see an increase of 6.2 percent in 2023, according to the Khmer Times. This is based on the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) preliminary assessment of the country’s macroeconomic situation.

According to Alasdair Scott, the IMF’s mission chief for Cambodia, despite dangers such as high inflation, the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war, the Chinese economy slowing down, and faster-than-expected tightening of monetary policy in developed countries, growth will be driven by socioeconomic recovery.

The growth projection for 2023, however, is expected to surpass 6.2 percent due to the tourism sector.

More: Cambodia eases quarantine protocols for fully vaccinated tourists

Cambodia is predicted to receive one million international visitors and eight million domestic visitors by the end of this year. It is forecasted to return to pre-pandemic levels in 2023 for domestic trips, with 11 million expected, and in 2025 for international travelers, with seven million expected. This, according to Phnom Penh Post.

Numbers for the first four months of 2022 showed that Cambodia welcomed 241,485 international tourists, a 191.5 percent increase YoY, and documented five million domestic trips, a 161.5 percent increase over last year’s figures.

Chhay Sivlin, president of the Cambodia Association of Travel Agents (CATA), was more optimistic, stating that these numbers were achievable based on real tourist flows in the first four months of 2022, when Cambodia had more than 200,000 international visitors after it reopened.

She predicted that tourism numbers will rise in time, once the time required to organise vacations was taken into account.

“I agree with the ministry’s forecast, because in 2025, there will be more tourists. From looking at some countries in the ASEAN region, trying to reopen and also resume flight operations, I’m confident that in the next three years, it will recover,” she said.

Moreover, during the 2022 Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland, Pan Sorasak, the Minister of Commerce, shared that the Cambodian government is considering digital economy as a new source of growth, as reported by the Khmer Times.

The Property Report editors wrote this article. For more information, email: [email protected].